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Weddings
Throwback: Pictures and videos from inside Isha Ambani and Anand Piramal’s star-studded sangeet
Beyoncé, Bollywood celebrities, bhangra and a big blowout, Isha Ambani and Anand Piramal’s pre-wedding festivities had it all
Extravagant, exclusive and extra… Isha Ambani’s multi-city, multi-event wedding with Anand Piramal had all integral descriptors of a big fat Indian celebration. And when we say over-the-top, we mean OTT. The Ambani family pulled out all the stops with the lavish affair that toted a guest list with preeminent names from Bollywood, sports, politics and business industries from the world over, a bridal trousseau like no other and pre-wedding celebrations in Rajasthan that took the cake. As for entertainment, a Beyoncé mini concert for the guests ensured that this was the most lavish wedding celebration in the country for years to come.
Ahead, we are reliving some unseen pictures and videos from the 28-year-old entrepreneur’s sangeet festivities in Udaipur in December 2018.
The star-studded sangeet
The pre-wedding festivities, hosted by Mukesh and Nita Ambani, took place at the 16th-century City Palace overlooking Lake Pichola in Udaipur and was aptly dubbed The Palace Soirée. Chartered jets that arrived in the city for the Indian heiress’ pre-wedding celebrations contributed to a four-fold increase in flight traffic at the city's airport on December 8, 2018. The celebrations kickstarted with a maha aarti, before proceeding to the fun-filled sangeet the next day. The A-list guests included Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Abhishek Bachchan, Priyanka Chopra and Nick Jonas, Katrina Kaif, Salman Khan, Karisma Kapoor, Shah Rukh Khan and Gauri Khan, Janhvi Kapoor, Akshay Kumar, Varun Dhawan, John Abraham, Vidya Balan and Sidharth Roy Kapur, among many others. From the sports fraternity, Sachin and Anjali Tendulkar, Sakshi and Ziva Dhoni also made their way to the event. And that's not all: with so many pre-wedding festivities, the bride and groom reportedly created a custom app to help their guests keep track of the schedule.
Shah Rukh Khan, Katrina Kaif, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan take the stage
As tradition dictates, family and friends of the bride and groom performed a number of dances on stage in their honour. One of the most memorable dances was by Nita Ambani, who is a trained Bharatnatyam performer. Post a solo performance on a Gujarati folk song, the mother of the bride shook a leg with sons, Akash and Anant Ambani on ‘Mahi Ve' from Shah Rukh Khan-starrer Kal Ho Naa Ho. It wasn’t long before the 54-year-old actor himself busted some moves with wife Gauri Khan on ‘Dilliwaali Girlfriend’ from Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani. Shloka Ambani and Radhika Merchant took over with an act on ‘Balam Pichkari’ from the same film.
In a beautiful ode to the Ambani family, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Abhishek Bachchan recreated a dance from their 2007 romantic drama film Guru, which is largely based on the life of Dhirubhai Ambani. Isha Ambani shook a leg on ‘Leja Leja’ from Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham with Karan Johar. A video also shows long-time friend of the Ambanis, Hillary Clinton, dressed in Indian attire, grooving with Shah Rukh Khan to hit Bollywood tracks like ‘Let's Nacho’ and ‘Tune Mari Entry’, keeping company with Arianna Huffington, British businessman Martin Sorrell, and newly-weds Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh.
Beyoncé stole the spotlight with a 45-minute performance
The highlight of the soirée was the private concert by Beyoncé, who brought along her mom, Tina Knowles to the event. The multi-award winning singer-songwriter had several outfit changes, including a sultry maroon gown by Abu Jani Sandeep Khosla that covered in mirror work, styled with a matha patti, haath phool and jhumkas by PinkCity by Anita Dongre; a beaded gold bodysuit by Falguni Shane Peacock; and a high-cut bejewelled swimsuit with raffia sleeves by Shivan & Narresh. The celebrity guests were treated to her performance on some of her chartbusters like ‘Crazy In Love', ‘Naughty Girl' and ‘Perfect’.
Isha Ambani and Anand Piramal dance on an Ed Sheeran favourite
After Isha Ambani's soulful solo on ‘Samjhawan’ from Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania followed by ‘Nachde Ne Saare’ from Baar Baar Dekho, she presented a romantic dance performance with Anand Piramal on ‘Mitwa' from Shah Rukh Khan's hit movie, Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna. It was followed by another dance on ‘Perfect’ by Ed Sheeran. The grand finale was on the title track of Jab Tak Hai Jaan, where the entire Ambani family joined in. Post which, the guests got on to the dance floor as singer Sukhbir Singh kept the party going until the wee hours in the morning.
The bridal couture
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The then-bride-to-be chose not one, but two lehengas by Manish Malhotra for the evening. First, a fuchsia set that was generously embellished with silver sequins and crystals. Speaking of Ambani’s pre-wedding look, the couturier told us, “Isha hand picked an embellished pink ensemble which enhanced her jewels beautifully. It was most special for me—a celebration of craft, love for our roots combined with my label’s signature glamour. This outfit took two months in the making, involving hundreds of hours of craftsmanship from our atelier.” Not only did the ace designer create the then-bride-to-be’s outfit, Malhotra also lent his expertise for the ensembles for the other members of the family, as well as the decor of the pre-wedding celebrations.
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Ambani later slipped into a metallic lehenga for her dance performance. The head-to-toe gold look comprised a sleeveless blouse, a billowing skirt and a complementing dupatta, all accented with both, gold and silver sequins in floral designs. Despite all the work on it, the look still managed to be lightweight, allowing the bride-to-be to dance the night away. “My primary aim was to make her feel comfortable and fabulous at the same time,” Manish Malhotra elaborated. “It was an absolute honour to curate the pre-wedding celebrations in Udaipur and design for the Ambanis. My primary aim was to make them feel comfortable and fabulous. Be it Isha’s shimmering gold ensemble for her sangeet performance or the elegant pink lehenga where she looked like a dream; each was a depiction of meticulous culture and craft.” Anand Piramal complemented his bride in a black kurta set.
